Wikis can be just about anything: organizational websites for events, encyclopedias, or project management tools. They’re amazingly easy to edit — no knowledge of HTML required. And you can set wikis up for free without having to worry about domains or hosting.

All of these characteristics make wikis useful for writers. I think, for instance, they’re a great option for organizing research for a book. If you wanted to do just that, the first step you have to make is to sign up with a site like Wetpaint.com for a free wiki. Wetpaint is especially easy to use. When you start the process, you’ll see this screen:

All you have to do is fill in a few blanks. One note for writers using wikis for projects: I recommend choosing to make your wiki private if you don’t want other people to be able to see, and even edit, your work. You can always invite specific people if you want their input on a project.

The next step is making your wiki visually appealing. You can stare at a page of notes all day, but why not make your page more enjoyable?

Lastly, you just need to give Wetpaint a little bit of information about yourself so that they can manage your account. And, even better, once you’ve established an account (for free, remember) you can set up multiple wikis for all those little projects you’ve got going.

From there, it’s as simple as clicking a few links and typing in whatever you want. Wetpaint even provides options for adding photos and other options with a few clicks, rather than messy HTML. You can add multiple pages for different aspects of a project.

There are a wide variety of things you can do with a wiki. But, for each one, it’s really easy to set up the wiki itself. It’s a versatile tool that should be in any writer’s toolbox.

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Wiki are even more powerful when you are trying to collaborate on writing. Two people can work on the same page while keeping track of the history and changes. Most wikis don’t handle two people working on the same page at the same time, but if you structure your stuff around this limitation, a wiki can really enhance collaboration–much better than sending Word documents back and forth.